


Senioritis

by Hvalross



Category: Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic
Genre: Accidental Sex, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Bonding, Cute, Developing Relationship, Drama, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Mutual Pining, Romance, Sex, Silly, Slow Burn, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-09
Updated: 2018-08-23
Packaged: 2019-06-24 09:35:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15627864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hvalross/pseuds/Hvalross
Summary: Kenmei is a senior going into her final semesters at her University, a school career which she focused only on studying hard, ignoring her social life for the sake of reaching her dreams. Things get flipped upside down when a cute boy with crimson eyes runs her over with his bicycle, however, and she finds their friendship quickly blossoms into romantic feelings. For her, at least. Judar x Kenmei (OC). College / Modern theme AU.





	1. The Rush

“Oh oops, I’m sorry! Excuse me!”

Kenmei called back to the stranger as she zipped past them on her bike, nearly colliding into them as they suddenly appeared from around a corner. She was unable to hear their incoherent yelling as she continued her journey, focused on not running into any of the other students who were exhaustedly trudging towards their unknown destinations. All that was on her mind was getting to class on time, and she cursed herself for picking classes that were all so far from her dorm. In fact, all her courses this semester were in the same two buildings. If she had picked at least a couple of closer classes, she would have gotten to relax or simply walk a few times a week.

Though, at this point, it didn’t really matter, and there was no point in fussing about it. Sure, she could walk every day instead of taking her bike if she wanted to. But on such a huge campus, she preferred the bike, as it cut her travel time down to less than half. A bicycle had been her main source of transportation for the majority of her teenage and now adult life, so she had gotten quite skilled on one. At least, enough to avoid crashing into people, which was always a danger with students on their phones or reading their notes as a last minute study session before class. Kenmei couldn’t exactly judge, however, as some of her routes had been spent relistening to lectures through her headphones.

Today she decided not to listen to anything, as she felt as if she really needed to focus on her route. It was the first day of classes for the Spring semester, and everything was a bit chaotic with both new and experienced students not really knowing where they were going. With this being her senior year, she knew exactly where she was going, but that was never the main issue to begin with. It was the other students, who would suddenly stop and change directions as they realized they took a wrong turn, or those that would pause to read a map. She knew that once the semester progressed, it wouldn’t be so bad, but she felt responsible for both hers and others safety if she was going to be using her bike like this.

As she reached the top of a particularly steep hill, Kenmei took a moment to pause and glance around. The fog of her hot breath in the chilly January air obscured her vision a bit, but she was able to see the bike rack she had been heading for. There was only one spot left, and she knew she had to get to it before someone else did. Otherwise, she would be taking her bike into the lecture hall, and that was always the most embarrassing thing for her to do. She hated the unwanted attention it gave her, even if it was minimal. With this thought, Kenmei resumed her journey, glad that the crowds of students had dissipated up in this section of the campus. Most of them were probably still making their way up the insane amount of stairs that led to this section, she assumed.

Moving quickly, she was successful in snagging the last spot in the bike rack, sighing in relief as she hopped off her bike right before she reached it. She walked the bike into place, using her foot to adjust the kickstand. The front wheel safely tucked into the metal bars of the rack, she pulled her backpack off her back to dig through it for the lock. Unfortunately, bicycle theft was common on this campus, so she had made a point to buy a very expensive, very difficult to remove even with a key style of lock. After getting it into place to attach the bike rack to the body of her bicycle, she gave it a small tug to make sure it was secure, giving a small, satisfied sigh when it showed no sign of budging.

Walking around to the other side of the bike that faced away from the rack, she slipped her backpack on, taking a moment to adjust her clothing. Even in the cold of late winter, she still felt the need to wear a skirt. Though, the fleece leggings, boots, heavy sweater and jacket were enough to keep her warm, and she often found herself shedding layers anyway. Too focused on adjusting the alignment of her jacket, she didn’t hear the screeching of bicycle wheels until a force rammed into the back of her legs.

Screaming out both from pain and shock, she stumbled forward, gripping onto the closest thing to her, which was a metal trash can. Kenmei felt relieved for a moment that it was bolted to the sidewalk, but that was quickly subdued by a sudden burning in her calves from where she had been hit. Pushing past the pain, she whipped around, glaring towards the figure that hit her behind the tears welling up in her eyes.

“Hey, watch where you’re going!” Even though she did her best to sound intimidating, her voice cracked and trembled with her flustered embarrassment. Not wanting to cry for this, she quickly reached up and wiped her eyes, listening to the stranger talk as she did so.

“You were in the way of the bike rack! Who the fuck just stands there in front of it like that?!”

Once her vision was clear, she glared back at the stranger again, though she felt a bit of surprise as she observed him. Still on his bike, he had one foot on the peddle while the other foot rested on the ground to support him. He was panting, as if he had just made a mad dash to get to the rack. If this was true, then Kenmei could understand why he had been unable to stop, but it didn’t excuse his actions now. There wasn’t a single apology from him. Instead, he glared right back at her with captivating crimson eyes that made Kenmei feel even more flustered. He was cute, and as stupid as it sounded, she nearly forgave him just for that reason.

Instead, she pointed towards the bike rack, not backing down just yet. “You could see from a mile away that the rack is full! I wasn’t even in front of it, you jerk! Just admit that you weren’t paying attention!” The boy rolled his eyes as he hopped off his bike, gripping onto both handles to steady it. “You were the one not paying attention! I even called out to you to move, the ground is slick and I couldn’t stop.” He turned his gaze to the rack, giving an annoyed sigh as he saw that it was full, just as Kenmei had said. “Damn it! Are you leaving, or did you just park?”

Kenmei crossed her arms, still upset that he hadn’t apologized to her. “I just parked to go to class. You know, you could at least say sorry. That hurt!” She lifted up one of her legs to check her calve, noticing that her leggings were now scuffed with dirt and the fabric was frayed. “I just bought these leggings…” She mumbled more to herself in irritation, reaching down to try and wipe the fabric clean. All she got in response was an annoyed groan and the sound of bicycle wheels as they clicked in movement. Glancing up, she noticed him walking away, red bike in tow.

Frowning, she watched him walk away for a moment, a bit frustrated with herself for being so easy on him. _Just because he’s cute doesn’t mean he should get a pass… I should confront him._ Just as she got ready to go after him, her phone buzzed violently in her jacket pocket, prompting her to pull it out. Big white letters spelled the word _‘CLASS IN 5 MINUTES’_ and she immediately felt panic flood her. Deciding to just let it slip, she made a mad dash towards the building, not wanting to be late on the first day because of such a ridiculous situation. After rushing and nearly tripping going up a flight of stairs, Kenmei made it into the large lecture hall, scanning her ID at the door to mark herself present.

Taking in a few deep breaths to ease her heavy breathing, she took a moment to glance around, noticing that almost all of the three-hundred seats were taken. Frustrated, she began to walk up the stairs looking for a spot to sit. The red bicycle against the wall barely tugged at her attention, though realization dawned upon her as she noticed the person in one of the only easy to reach open seats. The boy that had slammed into her just moments before was in the end seat of an isle, and the seat beside him was open. Glancing around, she noticed all the other seats were at in the middle of the rows or had bags in them already.

With a sigh, she dragged herself over, squeezing herself past his long legs until she stood in front of her seat. She carefully pulled her backpack off her shoulders, though was more wary of the other person beside her rather than the rude boy. In fact, she felt the urge to smack him with her bag, but decided against it, not wanting to seem petty. As she sat down, she placed the bag down on the ground, digging about inside it for her notebook and pen to take notes.

“What irony. I try to get away from you, and you end up having to sit next to me. Pretty fucked up.”

Feeling her face flush with heat, Kenmei only glanced at the boy beside her as she sat back up. He was absentmindedly chewing on the end of a pen as he scrolled through something on his phone, not even looking at her as he spoke. Kenmei pulled up the small desk surface that was attached to her chair, placing her belongings down onto it once it clicked into place. “Well,” she spoke softly, a bit worried about others around them getting into their business. “That’s what you deserve, I guess. You should have apologized.”

“Tch,” he removed the pen from his mouth, and Kenmei could feel his harsh gaze upon her. “I did apologize, did you not hear me?”

A bit surprised at his words, she finally looked up at him. “What?” Crimson eyes rolled in irritation as he placed the pen down on his own small desk, along with his phone. Kenmei could tell he had a short fuze and even shorter patience, but she was actually confused. She hadn’t heard him say anything, but maybe she missed it as he was walking away. It was very possible, as she had a tendency to miss things while mumbling to herself.

“I said sorry as I was walking off. Not my fault if you didn’t hear it.” He refused to look at her now, as if the thought of having to apologize embarrassed him. Still, his posture made Kenmei believe that his words were true, and her frustrations calmed. Crossing her legs the best she could under the small desk, she fidget with her pen, giving a small nod. “I see… It’s okay, it was an accident, really. I’m sorry I didn’t hear it.”

She looked back over at him when he didn’t respond, watching as he opened up his notebook with an annoyed look on his face. As she looked at him, she could feel her cheeks grow hotter, beginning to feel embarrassed at being in his presence. Everything about him embarrassed her, from his attitude, to his good looks, to the prideful way in which he carried himself. Yet, he was dressed quite lazily for seeming so into himself, in black sweatpants and a plain grey t-shirt. What caught her eye the most, however, was his hair. It was a messy flop on the top of his head, but the large braid that cascaded over his shoulder and across his lap was something she hadn’t noticed yet.

“Maybe you should ask my name before you sit there staring at me?”

As he spoke, Kenmei’s gaze quickly moved back up to his eyes, feeling her embarrassment grow at the smirk that crossed his face. Stuttering, she quickly looked away, clicking her pen nervously. “I-I’m sorry, I was just… just looking at your hair.” She swallowed the lump that had gathered in her throat, trying to find her courage. “But, yes, I guess you’re right. I’m Kenmei, it’s nice to meet you?” She felt immediate regret for the way that statement came out, as if she were asking his permission for it to be okay. _I seriously need to work on my people skills…_

She was a bit surprised as he chuckled, guessing he found humor in her timid nature. At this moment, she was unsure if she should take that as a good or bad sign, but was glad that the angry tension between them had faded.

“Judar,” he spoke, going back to looking at his phone. “And it can be nice to meet me, if you want it to be.”


	2. Superficial

The rest of the class went by as Kenmei expected, with hours worth of boring readings of syllabi, rules and expectations of the class. To keep herself focused, she scribbled notes about it, though she was pretty sure it was the exact same as all of the other classes she had taken up to this point. The same old ‘don’t sleep in class’ and ‘turn in your work on time’ nonsense that she had heard a million times. Pure common sense, except to a select few, who had already dozed off. She could notice each one, either slumped back in their seat, or their head propped up, resting in their hand. One for sure was right beside her, and she didn’t even have to look at him to be able to tell. 

In fact, Judar had fallen asleep faster than anyone else in the room. At least, Kenmei was pretty sure of this, as he had started snoring only minutes into the professor's speech. It was only loud enough for her to hear, and she decided to leave him be. Besides, she had only just met him, and it wasn’t like they were friendly enough for her to wake him. He would probably be angry with her if she did, and she was content to have no further negative encounters for the day. It was an early morning class, after all, so she wasn’t all that surprised. 

Though, as the professor dismissed the class, she noticed that Judar did not wake at the sound of everyone shuffling about. Knowing that everyone in the row was going to want to go out either their direction or the other, she had to wake him. Carefully, she reached over and tapped him on the shoulder. “Judar?” With no response, and a student sighing in frustration behind her, she shook him a bit more violently. She gasped when he finally awoke, both of them jumping as he reached over and snatched her hand. Judar gripped it tightly as he glanced around, before his annoyed glare landed on her. “What?!” 

Kenmei felt her face flushed, both from his gaze and the grip on her hand. “C-class is over… And you’re blocking the row.” His expression softening a bit, he glanced up, observing the others waiting. With a huff, he released her hand, snapping the small desk back into place loudly before standing with his belongings. Without another word, he went to his bike and began to lead it out of the room. Frowning, Kenmei stood with her things, leaving the seats and following the crowd to leave. Just as she had expected, he had been upset about being woken up.  _ At least it was the end of class,  _ she thought.  _ Would have been worse if I tried in the middle of it.  _

By the time she left the room, he was nowhere to be seen. She wasn’t sure why she felt so bad about this, having just met him. Through all her time at this campus, she had made very few friends, and there was something about him that interested her. It wasn’t something she could quite put her finger on, but she felt as if he were lonely. The way that he sat off as alone as he could during class, picking the end seat on the row and pressed against the edge of it to get as far from the nearest person as he could. His quick escape afterwards, and even the way he looked at her set off that feeling within her. Kenmei knew that it was none of her business, but she wondered if it were true. 

The second class of the day was just as monotonous as the first, and it dragged on even worse. By the time it was finally over, Kenmei was glad there was no other classes on her schedule for this day.  She knew that if she tried to sit through another one, she’d either be asleep or completely unfocused while absent mindedly doodling in her notebook. One thing she was glad for was that the second class actually gave her some reading to have to do, and she knew she could knock that out when she returned to her dorm. 

_ After a nice nap, perhaps.  _ She thought to herself as she unlocked her bicycle from the bike rack. Once placing the lock away in her bag, she began her ride back to her dorm. Deciding on a more leisurely ride, she took it slow, thinking over her day so far. It had been an interesting first day for sure, mostly because of the accident that morning. She could feel a slight burning in her calves as her fleece leggings rubbed against her skin with the movement of her legs, reminding her of it. Heat rising up in her cheeks, she felt so stupid for being so caught up in Judar’s physical appearance that she nearly forgave him right away. 

It made her feel shallow, that she would think that way of him. Kenmei felt as if it were wrong, and she nearly wanted to find him and apologize. Though, that was absolutely ridiculous.  _ Apologize for finding him attractive at first glance? What would I even say? Hey, Judar, I’m sorry I found you so gorgeous when you first ran me over with your bike, can you forgive me for being so superficial?  _

She rolled her eyes at her own thoughts, sighing loudly.  _ You have to get to know them before you fall for their looks, you idiot.  _ Just from their small interactions that morning, she was pretty sure they weren’t compatible, probably even as friends. Still, she felt a bubbling in her stomach that urged her to try, if she could find the courage to do so. If he truly was lonely, maybe he liked it that way, and her attention would be unwanted. It was frustrating to her, but she knew that only time would tell, and getting all worked up about someone she just met would only make things more stressful. 

By the time she reached her dorm building, she had exhausted herself mentally. Thankfully, the bike rack for this building was much larger, and there were plenty of extra spaces for her. As she walked her bike up, her eyes immediately landed on a familiar one. Judar’s red bike was parked here, locked and secured with the same lock she had. She found this curious as she looked at the dorm building, looking at the left side of it. The building was in a V shape with three stories, with the right section being the girls and the left section being the boys. The center point was the common room area and lobby, including a game room, study hall, computer room and small gym. This is the dorm she stayed in every semester, and she had never noticed Judar before. 

As she locked up her bike, she wondered if he was a new student here, or if he had just moved to this dorm. To be in their first class together, she knew he had to be the same year as her, so he wasn’t a new freshman.  _ A transfer student maybe? Or maybe I just never noticed him before.  _ Once secure, she left her bike behind as she headed inside, greeting the student workers and RA that sat behind the desk. Much to Kenmei’s displeasure, the RA for this building was extremely lenient, and allowed all sorts of madness to happen. From boys staying over, to loud parties and late nights in the common room, Kenmei had spent many a sleepless night with no help from the RA. 

Still, she was able to live through it, as long as she had a calm roommate. Last semester, her roommate had been great, but this time she wasn’t so lucky. In the week they had been there, she had already been greeted with her roommate’s boyfriend’s asscheeks and the pugent smell of weed. The library, she had told herself, was going to end up her best friend this semester. Though, she was met with relief when she finally reached her room, finding it empty and silent. Tossing her bag down, she was quick to change into something more comfortable, before flopping down into her bed. It was a small twin size that squeaked from years of abuse, but was otherwise oddly comfortable. 

Cuddling into her blankets and mass amounts of pillows, she found herself staring off at one of her roommates posters that was stuck to the wall with some tacks.  _ I wonder,  _ she thought,  _ how this semester is going to go.  _ She was so close to being done, to graduating and being able to move on with her life. Being twenty-three, she was tired of school, and wanted nothing more than to get her dream job of writing. Creative writing being her focus, she had to admit that she did love school and learning. Many people picked on her and made fun of her for being so studious, but she didn’t see it as a negative trait. Still, she felt that itch to move on with her life, and could only wait for it. 

As her eyes closed, she drifted off into dreams of her future. Though, these dreams were short lived, as the loud sound of her roommate returning pulled her back into consciousness. She peeked out over her blankets, observing the girl as she came into the room, loudly shutting the door behind her in obvious frustration. Grumbling and ignoring her roommates complaints, she reached for her phone, looking at the time. She had only slept a little over an hour, but that was enough for her, as she already found herself desperately wanting to escape the confined room. 

Crawling out of bed, she jumped at the sudden gasp from her roommate, looking over to see her staring at her. Kenmei frowned, fidging a bit in her spot. Her roommate glared at her, crossing her arms over her chest. 

“What do you think you’re doing, wearing something like that? What if I had brought my boyfriend in?” 

Her voice irritated Kenmei to the point of no return, but she still kept calm, looking down at herself. “I’m just wearing a tanktop and pajama pants.” She gathered some clothes, deciding to go down to the study area to read her assignment. Walking into the small bathroom the room had, she shut the door behind her to change, trying to ignore her roommates ranting on the other side of it. 

“That doesn’t matter, you’re not wearing a bra! I can’t have him seeing your tits!” 

Kenmei rolled her eyes as she dressed herself, pulling on some jeans and a sweater on over her tank top. It was true, Kenmei often didn’t wear bras for more than they were just uncomfortable, but she didn’t find a reason to explain to this other girl why. “If you’re that worried about him seeing me without a bra, maybe you both need to reevaluate your relationship?” She murmured to herself, almost wishing she had the courage to say it louder. Too timid, she finished dressing, grabbed her belongings she wanted to take with her, and fled the room while she was still being yelled at. 

Before she knew it, she was down two flights of stairs and headed towards the study area, determined to get that nice seat by the window and try to relax a bit. Though, as she was passing the game room, she heard a familiar voice, pausing by the door. Peeking inside, she saw Judar sitting on one of the couches in front of a TV, playing some game she didn’t quite recognize. He was alone in the room, and seemed to be taking advantage of that as he cursed and yelled out freely in frustration. She assumed that he was having a bit of trouble, but from what she could see, he looked to be doing quite well. 

Curiosity taking over, she quietly headed into the room, stopping a few feet back from the couch to watch. Unfamiliar with games herself, she wasn’t sure what was going on, but Judar’s excitement and passionate attitude towards it was a bit contagious. She walked a bit closer, waiting until he had stopped playing long enough to save. Swallowing her fear of speaking to him, she cleared her throat softly. Though, before she could speak, she gasped as he jumped, obviously startled by her sudden appearance. She hadn’t quite thought that through, that he would have been shocked by her suddenly being there. 

She fumbled with her books in her own embarrassment as he whipped around to look at her, his eyes wide with shock at first, before they narrowed in annoyance. “What the fuck!” He pointed towards the TV. “Don’t you see I’m playing a game? Why would you sneak up on someone?!” 

Kenmei shook her head as one of her books fell loudly to the floor, feeling her face flush with heat. “I-I’m sorry, Judar, it’s just- I mean,” She took a deep breath as she squatted down to pick up her book. “I was just going to say, you play really well…” She stayed in her squatted position as she reorganized the pile in her arms, too flustered to stand up and look at him. Though, she heard a huff, and the fabric of the couch moving as he did. 

“Thanks, I guess. Do you even know about games?” 


	3. Mysterious

“U-uhm, well…” Kenmei stood, walking up closer to stand right behind the couch, watching the screen as he went back to playing. “Not really. My brother is, though, so I’ve seen a lot. This game is familiar, actually.” A smile crossed her face as she thought of it, suddenly missing her brother, even though he was just across campus in an apartment. “He used to play these games when he was still an undergraduate student, right when I was starting school, in this same room. Though I think things were moved around back then.” She pulled her eyes from the TV to look down at Judar, just barely catching his gaze peering at her from the corner of his eye before he looked away. Kenmei felt quite impressed that he could still play so well, even while talking to her. 

“Your brother- ah, fuck!” Judar cut himself off, cursing as he was attacked in the game, though he gained his composure quickly. “Your brother goes here?” Kenmei nodded, trying to hold back a giggle at his fit. “He’s a graduate student, in the education program.” Judar only gave a semi-interested grunt in response, focused on his fighting of monsters. After a moment of silence, Kenmei looked down at her books, remembering why she had come down there in the first place. But, before she could speak, Judar piped up instead, pausing the game to save again. “Are you going to sit down, or keep standing there like a weirdo?” 

Feeling her face flush, she glanced around nervously, feeling worried about someone seeing them, even though she knew that was irrational. “I mean, if you don’t mind?” Judar glanced up at her as he scooted away from the middle of the couch, sitting instead in the left seat. “Would I have asked if I didn’t mind?” Cheeks only growing hotter, Kenmei came around the couch to sit on the right side, pulling her legs up into the seat as she sat. “I suppose not. I did come down here to study a bit.” Judar scoffed, glancing at her as she sat down. “Already? It’s literally the first day.” 

“Well,” Kenmei placed her books down in the empty middle seat, keeping the one she really needed in her lap. “My bio class has some reading I have to do before next time we meet. I like to think it’s better to just get it over with, that way you’re not rushing last minute.” Judar gave a small nod, though his focus was still mostly on the television. “Uh huh. So you’re a book nerd?” Kenmei turned her book to the appropriate chapter, deciding not to take his comment as an insult. “I very much like to read and study, yes. Creative writing is my concentration, so-” She was cut off as Judar scoffed in amusement, a snarky smirk crossing his face as he took another quick glance at her. 

“Creative writing? What type of BS major is that?” 

This time, Kenmei took insult, narrowing her eyes at him. “It’s not BS. I’ve already written two books, I’m just waiting to graduate before I try to publish them. I’m proud to say that my writing earned me a scholarship, so I don’t really appreciate your mocking.” Although she tried to be confident, her voice trembled. She hated that no matter how hard she tried, she found it nearly impossible to stand up for herself, even over something she was so passionate about. Even though she was upset, his response shocked her, and she felt herself calming immediately. 

“Hey, that’s pretty cool. It must be good then.” There was no mocking in his voice, only a slightly uninterested tone as he focused mostly on his game. “Maybe I’ll read it some time.” Kenmei felt her cheeks grow hot again at the thought of someone else reading her writing. Sure, she loved to share it, but it also embarrassed her anytime she did so. “If you’d like…” Fidgeting with her book a bit, there was a moment of silence between them, and Kenmei felt unsure of what to think of him. Judar seemed nice enough to her, if not a little bratty and condescending. She could still feel that lonely vibe coming from him, and she felt it even more now that he had invited her to sit with him. 

Pulling her long black hair over her shoulder, she began to braid it, finding it a bit irritating in it’s loose state. “What is your major?” 

Judar only gave a ‘huh’ in response at first, as if he didn’t hear her. Before she could repeat herself, he seemed to recognize her question, giving a small shake of his head. “Oh. Computer sciences. Programmer, coder… whatever you want to call it.” Kenmei was a bit surprised at this, having not really expected such a serious and intense program for him to be into. She was quite impressed, actually, and felt a bit embarrassed that she had thought he would be in something, well… easier. The way he acted, he seemed very lazy and not studious at all. At this particular university, the program he was in was one of the most difficult to get into, so she couldn’t help but feel a bit curious about his intelligence. 

“That’s really amazing. I know that program is really hard to get into and well… stay in.” As she tied the braid off at the end, she watched his hands for a moment, a bit fascinated with the way they handled the controller. Judar gave a small shrug. “It’s not that bad. I mean, some classes are shit, sure, but what program doesn’t have shit classes? Like that one this morning… I hate writing. Fucking sucks. Ah, you shit!” Judar’s sudden outburst at the TV made Kenmei jump, though it quickly brought a giggle from her. She found his passion for the game to be both confusing and quite adorable, even if he was cursing and angry at it. It was funny to her, and the complete opposite of her calm and collected brother. 

Judar huffed a bit as he glanced at her, and Kenmei could see his cheeks were slightly pink in hue. “What are you laughing at?” Kenmei smiled, looking back down at her book as she decided to try and get some reading in. “Nothing. You’re just so passionate about your game.” With only a small, embarrassed grumble in response, silence fell between them. Kenmei focused on her reading, his occasional outbursts and sighs of frustrations not bothering her too badly. In fact, she quite enjoyed the noise, as she found it helped her focus better on her reading. Though, the longer she sat there with him, the quieter he became, and she wondered why. She thought that perhaps he was being conscious of her studying, or if he had just gotten tired of being so vocal. 

Eventually, the sound of the gaming console shutting down caught her attention and she glanced up at the TV, before her eyes moved to look at Judar. He was stretching and letting out a large yawn, and Kenmei could hear the popping of bones. Although the t-shirt and sweatpants he wore was quite baggy, she could tell he was thin and a bit lanky. As he stretched, she couldn’t help but glance down as his stomach peeked out, and she immediately felt her face flush hot. Looking away before he noticed, she tried to go back to reading, but found herself effectively distracted.  _ He must work out or something, he’s got abs.  _

Her thoughts were confirmed as he stood, walking over to place the controller back in it’s charging stand. “I’m out, going to go for a run. See you later, maybe. Uh, Mei, right?” He looked down at her with a curious expression, and Kenmei smiled, positive that he could see the red on her face. “Kenmei. But Mei is fine. It’s was nice hanging out with you for a bit, Judar.” He gave a small wave in farewell as he headed out of the room, pulling his phone from his pocket. She watched him as he went, wondering what type of music he was listening to as he put his headphones in. 

She found herself so curious about him, wishing she could ask all the questions that rattled about in her mind. It was odd to her that he seemed to take to her so well, even though they were very much opposites. At least, she thought that he was accepting of her, by the way he acted. With his personality, she assumed that he would push her away if he truly disliked her for one reason or another. But, inviting her to sit with him while he played spoke differently, and she actually hoped that maybe they could become friends. Being in her senior year, friends were not her focus, but she had to admit that she was feeling a bit lonely herself. 

Looking back down at her book, she quickly found herself lost in the words again, reading all the way through her assigned chapters. By the time she looked up, it was nearing three o’clock, and she was starving. She had been there about thirty minutes after Judar left, and she decided that was long enough to sit here alone. Closing her book and picking up the rest of her belongings, she made her way back up to her dorm room, switching her books for her money and a jacket quickly. She was fast enough to only be subjected to her roommates bitching for a few moments, before she made her way back outside. 

It had grown a bit warmer, so she didn’t bother to put the jacket on. Instead, she walked with it over her arm, watching the other students as she passed them by. People watching was one of her favorite things to do, finding each and every person to be so unique in their own way. Some more than others, and she found it fascinating that you could tell their personalities just from their choice of clothing or accessories, or even the other people they walked with. Each person she looked at, she guessed what type of program they were in. Sure, she would never be able to tell, but it was a fun game to play in her mind as she passed them by. 

Judar, however, had not been like the rest of these people. In fact, almost nothing about his looks gave her any indication about how he was. She guessed that is one of the reasons her interested was so peeked when it came to him. From what she could tell so far, he had been able to read her like an open book, and yet she couldn’t tell anything about him unless he said it himself. Just as she thought of this, there was a soft nudge to her shoulder and she gasped, jumping a bit from the shock of it. As he looked up, she caught Judar’s snarky grin as he jogged past her, giving a small sharp wave in greeting. 

Kenmei couldn’t stop a pout crossing her face, holding her jacket closer to her body. “Hey, be careful! You could hurt someone!” Judar turned to jog backwards, pulling his headphones out. “What? I didn’t-” Suddenly, he rammed into someone, sending both him and the other person crashing to the floor. With a gasp, Kenmei ran over, kneeling down beside both of them. “Are you okay?” Though her question was mostly directed towards Judar, it was ignored by both of them as they glared at each other. 

“What the hell, Judar?!” The other boy snapped, sitting up onto his knees. Curious, Kenmei looked up at him, feeling a bit of shock at the scar that covered the left side of his face. “Tch! You did that on purpose, Hakuryuu!” Judar put his feet on this boys side and pushed him over, sending him back onto his butt. Kenmei stared at the two in bewilderment, actually surprised that they knew each other. Neither of them seemed to notice her just yet, arguing back and forth as they sat on the ground in the middle of the walkway. 

Hakuryuu stood, dusting himself off. “You’re lucky that it was me and not some random person! What are you doing jogging backwards, anyway?” Kenmei tried to speak, but was immediately drowned out by Judar’s own response. “Yeah, you’re lucky it’s you, or I’d kick your ass for getting in my way.” 

“E-excuse me…” Kenmei tried to chime in again.

“Really, Judar? You’d beat up some random person because you weren’t looking where you were going?” 

“Please-” 

“What I would do is none of your business! You should watch where you’re walking!” 

“Excuse me!” 

Both boys stopped their griping, looking at Kenmei as she stayed knelt down beside Judar, feeling her face flush as they both looked at her. “I-I’m sorry. It was my fault, I had said something to him when he passed me.” She gave a small gasp as Judar nudged her in the arm before he started to stand. “Don’t apologize, Mei, it wasn’t your fault.” He held his hand out towards her and she timidly took it, using his help to stand. Glancing between the two boys, she took her hand back, once again clutching tightly onto her jacket. “You two know each other? That is a bit of relief… Would have been worse if you were strangers.” 

Hakuryuu sighed, reaching up to rub his face. “He’s my brother. Technically.” Judar placed his hands on his hips, a position Kenmei assumed he took when he was angry. “Yeah. Technically.” Kenmei found the mocking from Judar to be a bit childish, but she smiled nonetheless. “I see. Well, it’s nice to meet you.” She held her hand out towards Hakuryuu, who shook it gently, his features softening. “Yes, it is, miss...?” Kenmei took her hand back, finding his gentlemanly nature so opposite from the fussy Judar beside her. 

“Kenmei.” She turned her gaze up to Judar, noticing him staring down at her in annoyance. Her face flushing, she fidgeted in her spot a bit, not sure what she had done wrong. “W-what?” 

Judar grumbled as he crossed his arms, looking away from her. “You didn’t greet me like that.” Kenmei narrowed her eyes at him, feeling a bit annoyed at his comment. “Excuse me? You ran me over with your bike! Of course I didn’t!” Hakuryuu gasped, pointing towards Kenmei as he looked up at Judar. “This is the girl you ran over?” Judar’s face flushed red as he turned, walking away as he shoved his hands into his pockets in embarrassment. “Shut up!” Kenmei and Hakuryuu exchanged glances before they went after him. “Judar, wait!” 

“I don’t want to talk about it!” Judar snapped at them both, and Kenmei could feel the flustered embarrassment and shame radiating from him. After a moment, he stopped, glancing back at them over his shoulder. 

“I’m hungry. Want to get lunch?” 

Kenmei stopped as well, feeling her stomach flutter violently from the oddly soft expression on his face. She smiled, feeling something bubbling within her as she nodded. Even though she had just met him, she had a feeling that he was going to end up flipping her world upside down if they continued at this pace. 

“I’d like that.” 


End file.
